I'm due to complete on said house this friday :-)

Crack is of little/no concern, it seems, though will be keeping eye on
it. I'm sure I'll be spending lots of time here, searching past posts
and asking new questions, since I'll be getting a lot of stuff DIY'd
rather than paying a pro - lack of money due to house purchase!

But I wanted to say thanks to those who gave me some sound advice, and
blow raspberries at those who said don't touch it with a bargepole

I'm getting a bigger house in a quieter road with a much bigger garden
than I ever expected to be able to. If I'd been scared off as a first
time buyer by the crack/damp/woodworm issues, I'd still be frantically
trying to find a place to live before my current place was repo'd (crap
landlords in debt, hate them!).

As it is, I have 6 months to get the damp/woodworm sorted (though
leeway available on this, as long as I don't want to borrow any more
against the place) - woodworm's probably being done 2 days before the
furniture's moved up there, the rest I'll be DIY'ing if poss... and the
woodworm guy said the original damp and timber people were talking out
their a**es on the damp - he's happy to show me why he thinks I have
woodworm needing treatment too though, so we'll see if I believe him on
that :-)

Finally I'm joining the ranks of homeowners, and thus able to DIY in my
own house without having to hold back due to tenancy agreements!

I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations? I'm thinking
electrical/plumbing/drains - anything else that might not have occurred
though...

I have some of the basics (reasonable hammer drill, spanners,
adjustable spanner of some size or other, hammer etc, but probably not
a lot more than that - screwdrivers but generally the sort more used in
IT (pc sized to suitable for racking kit in comms rooms).

Oh, and a question straight off the bat:

I want to route coax up from the livingroom (front room) to the front
bedroom. And telephone and Cat5 cable from livingroom to back bedroom.

What's the best way to do this - coax up the internal wall, through teh
ceiling/floor? There's a solid brick wall between front/back half of
the house. Again, is it easiest to run cabling for telephone and cat5
up the wall, along ceiling/floor, through wall, and across back bedroom
floor and up at a convenient point through teh floor? Or route it out
the living room, up the stairs, around the landing/bathroom door, into
back bedroom that way?

I'm sure I'm not the first or the last to be wanting to do this :-)

And wireless would be nice but I want the AP up in the back bedroom,
and the internet will be in the front livingroom...

Velvet

Velvet wrote:

*** replies interspersed ***

I'm due to complete on said house this friday :-)

Congratulations.

snip


Finally I'm joining the ranks of homeowners, and thus able to DIY in my
own house without having to hold back due to tenancy agreements!


Find the quickest route to the A&E department


I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations? I'm thinking
electrical/plumbing/drains - anything else that might not have occurred
though...

I have some of the basics (reasonable hammer drill, spanners,
adjustable spanner of some size or other, hammer etc, but probably not
a lot more than that - screwdrivers but generally the sort more used in
IT (pc sized to suitable for racking kit in comms rooms).


Definately a decent set of screwdrivers, and a cordless screwdriver (or
maybe better, a cordless drill/screwdriver). Other tools like saws etc.
you'd be better buying as and when you discover a need for them.

Make sure you also have a key for the gas / electricity meters (and
isolators) - if you need them, before you start work


Oh, and a question straight off the bat:

I want to route coax up from the livingroom (front room) to the front
bedroom. And telephone and Cat5 cable from livingroom to back bedroom.

What's the best way to do this - coax up the internal wall, through teh
ceiling/floor? There's a solid brick wall between front/back half of
the house. Again, is it easiest to run cabling for telephone and cat5
up the wall, along ceiling/floor, through wall, and across back bedroom
floor and up at a convenient point through teh floor? Or route it out
the living room, up the stairs, around the landing/bathroom door, into
back bedroom that way?

I'm sure I'm not the first or the last to be wanting to do this :-)

And wireless would be nice but I want the AP up in the back bedroom,
and the internet will be in the front livingroom...

Big house?, most APs have a decent range, even indoors.


Velvet


Mike

Mike Dodd wrote:
Velvet wrote:

And wireless would be nice but I want the AP up in the back bedroom,
and the internet will be in the front livingroom...

Big house?, most APs have a decent range, even indoors.


In big old (stone) houses round here, I've had a lot of success installing
an AP or sometimes a directional antenna in the ridge of the roof firing
downwards.

2.4GHz goes through a few layers of floorboards much better than through 16"
stone walls...

and the woodworm guy said the original damp and timber people were
talking out their a**es on the damp -

That's normal. Damp-proofing companies are often run by crooks.

There's very little damp that can't be sorted by the following steps:

1. Remove any heaped earth or concrete from the outside walls.
2. Ream out the crud from any airbricks.
3. Don't be stingy with the central heating.
4. Ensure that all rooms have adequete ventilation.
5. Don't dry clothes on the radiator/indoor line
6. Don't use a vented dryer without an external hose.
7. Fit an extractor fan in the bathroom.

It is rare that any great expenditure is required unless (3) requires the
installation of the central heating.

Christian.

Mike Dodd wrote:
Velvet wrote:

I'm due to complete on said house this friday :-)

nice one.


Finally I'm joining the ranks of homeowners, and thus able to DIY in my
own house without having to hold back due to tenancy agreements!

Find the quickest route to the A&E department

lol


I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations? I'm thinking
electrical/plumbing/drains - anything else that might not have occurred
though...

I have some of the basics (reasonable hammer drill, spanners,
adjustable spanner of some size or other, hammer etc, but probably not
a lot more than that - screwdrivers but generally the sort more used in
IT (pc sized to suitable for racking kit in comms rooms).

sounds like youre a bit lacking there. A cordless drill/driver saves a
whole lotta effort. If you work out how much labour they save, and what
thats worth, even an expensive codless is a decent deal. Avoid junk
stuff, though even that is much better than nothing.

For more power, get a hex bit holder that goes in the mains drill. Also
a set of hex shank drill bits, makes life quicker for the lighter duty
drilling. And of course drill bits, rawl type plugs and a box of mixed
woodscrews (crosshead, avoid slot head).

Tools are so cheap now you can wonder down to poundland with =A350 and
get one of everything you think you might need. Youll come away with
=A3150 worth of reasonably decent tools, plus 20% of junk, and save
endless trips back into town.

Also I'd get screwfix and toolstation catalogues.

If you list what needs sorting we could advise further. If much needs
doing I'd get at least a budget circ saw (not a codless) and a ladder.
DIY the ladder of course.

For drains, some caustic soda and washing soda are good, plus eye
goggles.

Tesco limescale removing bog cleaner is multiuseful - though a bit
vicious, it contains HCl.


Oh, and a question straight off the bat:

I want to route coax up from the livingroom (front room) to the front
bedroom. And telephone and Cat5 cable from livingroom to back bedroom.

What's the best way to do this - coax up the internal

Without seeing it, who knows... I cant even begin to visualise it.

If its practical to put some kind of trunking in, that sure makes
cabling upgrade a whole lot easier in future.


Crack is of little/no concern, it seems, though will be keeping eye on it.

bad neighbourhood?


But I wanted to say thanks to those who gave me some sound advice, and
blow raspberries at those who said don't touch it with a bargepole

haha. Good to succeed isnt it?


I'm getting a bigger house in a quieter road with a much bigger garden
than I ever expected to be able to.


As it is, I have 6 months to get the damp/woodworm sorted

Its walletworm you gotta watch out for. That does the most damage.

G'luck,


NT

In big old (stone) houses round here, I've had a lot of success installing
an AP or sometimes a directional antenna in the ridge of the roof firing
downwards.

2.4GHz goes through a few layers of floorboards much better than through 16"
stone walls...

I think you ought to repeat that on some pc newgroups, having seen some of
the ******** spouted about wireless on those groups g.

Dave

On 18 Jul 2005 07:22:58 -0700, "Velvet" wrote:

I'm due to complete on said house this friday :-)

Congratulations! Now the fun begins

I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations?

Screwfix catalogue. Even if you don't buy everything from them, the
catalogue has a wide range of good quality equipment at reasonable
prices and will provide you with a good benchmark

Anna

~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plaster repairs
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 01359 230642

Velvet wrote:
I'm due to complete on said house this friday :-)

Good-oh.


Crack is of little/no concern, it seems, though will be keeping eye on
it. I'm sure I'll be spending lots of time here, searching past posts
and asking new questions, since I'll be getting a lot of stuff DIY'd
rather than paying a pro - lack of money due to house purchase!

Makes lots of sense if you're at all practical. It might be productive
to ask "pros" questions, watch them work, or whatever - even if you have
someone to do the first job, you can learn how to do it next time.


But I wanted to say thanks to those who gave me some sound advice, and
blow raspberries at those who said don't touch it with a bargepole

I'm getting a bigger house in a quieter road with a much bigger garden
than I ever expected to be able to. If I'd been scared off as a first
time buyer by the crack/damp/woodworm issues, I'd still be frantically
trying to find a place to live before my current place was repo'd (crap
landlords in debt, hate them!).

That's nice, then - when I bought my first house, I'd noticed it
with a "For Sale" sign up for *ages* and thought "I couldn't
*possibly* afford *that*!" - however, at an Estate Agent the
details (in my price range) were produced, with a "Oh, you wouldn't
want that, it needs lots of work!". Hah! Sold.


As it is, I have 6 months to get the damp/woodworm sorted (though
leeway available on this, as long as I don't want to borrow any more
against the place) - woodworm's probably being done 2 days before the
furniture's moved up there, the rest I'll be DIY'ing if poss... and the
woodworm guy said the original damp and timber people were talking out
their a**es on the damp - he's happy to show me why he thinks I have
woodworm needing treatment too though, so we'll see if I believe him on
that :-)

Great, sounds a chatty chap. Ask questions, you may get "war stories",
information about how things work (why the treatment is effective
against woodworm, how "rising damp" works, meters, dry/wet rot, etc.);
just talk, if you've a good 'un, you'll get lots of interesting stuff,
even OT useful stuff maybe. Don't directly contradict "tradesmen",
make your own mind up about what they say, ask the whys and wherefores,
give tea & be friendly! You know - "life" - as you'd expect to be
treated if working for someone.

(excuse the cider, it's making me rather expansive)


Finally I'm joining the ranks of homeowners, and thus able to DIY in my
own house without having to hold back due to tenancy agreements!

"May I put in a screw to hold a mirror up?" Ans: "NO!".


I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations? I'm thinking
electrical/plumbing/drains - anything else that might not have occurred
though...

Don't worry about it. Make sure you know the system you've got. You
need to know where the stopcock is and whether it works, where valves
are from the cold/hot water tank, how to switch off the electricity/gas.
This is enough to stop *really* rude things happening, and you can then
sort the problem out at comparative leisure.


I have some of the basics (reasonable hammer drill, spanners,
adjustable spanner of some size or other, hammer etc, but probably not
a lot more than that - screwdrivers but generally the sort more used in
IT (pc sized to suitable for racking kit in comms rooms).

Buy kit as you need it, if you can - *don't* try to put together an
all-purpose toolkit straight away, you will find that you never use
some tools which you thought might be really, really useful, and
haven't what you need. Buy quality unpowered hand tools; for powered
hand tools go for what works. Don't ignore unpowered hand tools such
as tenon saws, planes, brace & bit etc., etc. (pssst! these can
sometimes be had at markets 2nd. hand) - they can be of more
use than power tools, sometimes. I've yet to come across an unusable
power tool (although some are obviously better/longer-lived than
others), but a screwdriver/plane/float/whatnot made of monkey metal
is a disaster.


Oh, and a question straight off the bat:

I want to route coax up from the livingroom (front room) to the front
bedroom. And telephone and Cat5 cable from livingroom to back bedroom.

What's the best way to do this - coax up the internal wall, through teh
ceiling/floor? There's a solid brick wall between front/back half of
the house. Again, is it easiest to run cabling for telephone and cat5
up the wall, along ceiling/floor, through wall, and across back bedroom
floor and up at a convenient point through teh floor? Or route it out
the living room, up the stairs, around the landing/bathroom door, into
back bedroom that way?

I'm sure I'm not the first or the last to be wanting to do this :-)

And wireless would be nice but I want the AP up in the back bedroom,
and the internet will be in the front livingroom...

Dunno. IIWY I'd put up with trailing wires, or wires stuck/stapled
or blu-tacked or whatever until I "got to know" the house a bit
better, i.e. when it's yours, you're there, and can prioritise things
a bit better. What do you do? Install your wires, then find you've
got to move them 'cos [something else is in the way]? Decorate & then
have to re-do something? Realise after you've been "in" for a while
that it would have been much easier/neater/better to put the wires
somewhere else, & you need to make good previous work *and* re-wire?
Just put the cable where it can go/be removed easily - it's cheap in
terms of time and effort. Hide it under the carpet, clip it (or tape
(!) it) to the skirting, let it run loose, run it under doors -
'till you can work out your "grand scheme".


Velvet

Well done, keep up the good work. I have now nearly run out of cider,
so it's probably sleepy time.

In article , dave stanton
writes

In big old (stone) houses round here, I've had a lot of success installing
an AP or sometimes a directional antenna in the ridge of the roof firing
downwards.

2.4GHz goes through a few layers of floorboards much better than through 16"
stone walls...

I think you ought to repeat that on some pc newgroups, having seen some of
the ******** spouted about wireless on those groups g.

Dave


More tends to reflect round such obstacles.....

--
Tony Sayer

Velvet wrote:


I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations? I'm thinking
electrical/plumbing/drains - anything else that might not have occurred
though...

What the others have said, plus:

Bleeding key for the radiators
mini pipe cutter
cheap multimeter
blowtorch
big box of rawlplugs
boxes of screws (10x2" are pretty hand for lots of stuff)


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

In message , John
Rumm writes
Velvet wrote:


I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations? I'm thinking
electrical/plumbing/drains - anything else that might not have occurred
though...

What the others have said, plus:

Bleeding key for the radiators
mini pipe cutter
cheap multimeter
blowtorch
big box of rawlplugs
boxes of screws (10x2" are pretty hand for lots of stuff)



Fire Extinguishers

--
Richard Faulkner

Richard Faulkner wrote:
Velvet wrote:

I'll go read the FAQ once I'm and have net access again, but in the
mean time, what would people suggest (if it's not in the FAQ) as
essential toolkit for those emergency repair situations? I'm thinking

Fire Extinguishers

First find the nearest route to A&E, then fire extinguishers... poor OP
will be thinking we dont have much confidence in his diy.

When I asked about extinguishers on a fire fighters group I was
basically told that domestic ones dont save lives, as they get as many
people into trouble as out. But Im not professing any real knowledge on
that.

Smoke detectors are agreed to be a life saver, cheap too.


NT

LOL, thanks peeps :-)

Some good ideas in there that I'd not thought of (looks up A&E)...

Fire extinguishers - I used to have one of these but well out of date
by now. It was generally regarded, as you say, that the domestic ones
are barely worth it, and definitely not worth it unless you actually
know what your'e supposed to be doing, and have practised it too..

Have smoke detector but am thinking need another one (current place all
on one floor, new is typical semi over two). No, I'm not stealing the
landlady's one, it's mine cos there'd never been one installed when I
started renting it 13 years ago

Oh, and I'm a her not a he (or I was last time I looked!) - but I don't
mind about what you think about my DIY skills, it's well known that any
DIY'er assumes all others (including the professionals) are incompetent
fools until proven otherwise, after all ;-)

--
Velvet

In message om, Velvet
writes
LOL, thanks peeps :-)

Some good ideas in there that I'd not thought of (looks up A&E)...

Fire extinguishers - I used to have one of these but well out of date
by now. It was generally regarded, as you say, that the domestic ones
are barely worth it, and definitely not worth it unless you actually
know what your'e supposed to be doing, and have practised it too..


I only mentioned fire extinguisher because, when I turned on the C/H in
one of my flats the other day, there was a sharp crack, the power went
off, and I could smell a burning smell near the Fuse Box. It turned out
to be no big deal - a wire had burnt out, and cooled down fairly
quickly, and it's now fixed. However, I felt really
uncomfortable/worried, and would have felt a lot better if I had had an
extinguisher handy. Pull the loop, aim at base of fire, press the
trigger - not sure what's difficult about that g

FYI I have almost completed the refurbishment of a block of 6 flats, and
fire extinguishers are due to be fitted shortly.

Have smoke detector but am thinking need another one (current place all
on one floor, new is typical semi over two). No, I'm not stealing the
landlady's one, it's mine cos there'd never been one installed when I
started renting it 13 years ago


--
Velvet


--
Richard Faulkner

Richard Faulkner wrote:
In message om, Velvet
writes

LOL, thanks peeps :-)

I suspect its cos you said you had so few tools.


I only mentioned fire extinguisher because, when I turned on the C/H in
one of my flats the other day, there was a sharp crack, the power went
off, and I could smell a burning smell near the Fuse Box. It turned out
to be no big deal - a wire had burnt out, and cooled down fairly
quickly, and it's now fixed. However, I felt really
uncomfortable/worried, and would have felt a lot better if I had had an
extinguisher handy. Pull the loop, aim at base of fire, press the
trigger - not sure what's difficult about that g

Not difficult, but if I understand right, lethal. It is essential to
stand on the exit side of the fire, so that when the fire is 5x the
size after youre done spraying it, youre not then trapped and facing
death. That is, again IIUC, one way they get people into trouble.
Another is they expose you to smoke inhalation, which kills more people
than the fire itself.

I was told that unless youre a fire fighter, get out and stay out.


FYI I have almost completed the refurbishment of a block of 6 flats, and
fire extinguishers are due to be fitted shortly.

Have smoke detector but am thinking need another one (current place all
on one floor, new is typical semi over two). No, I'm not stealing the
landlady's one, it's mine cos there'd never been one installed when I
started renting it 13 years ago

Smoke alarms are cheap, unreliable, and life savers. Use 3 or 4.


NT

On 20 Jul 2005 23:58:37 -0700, wrote:

I only mentioned fire extinguisher because, when I turned on the C/H in
one of my flats the other day, there was a sharp crack, the power went
off, and I could smell a burning smell near the Fuse Box. It turned out
to be no big deal - a wire had burnt out, and cooled down fairly
quickly, and it's now fixed. However, I felt really
uncomfortable/worried, and would have felt a lot better if I had had an
extinguisher handy. Pull the loop, aim at base of fire, press the
trigger - not sure what's difficult about that g

Not difficult, but if I understand right, lethal. It is essential to
stand on the exit side of the fire, so that when the fire is 5x the
size after youre done spraying it, youre not then trapped and facing
death. That is, again IIUC, one way they get people into trouble.
Another is they expose you to smoke inhalation, which kills more people
than the fire itself.

When I went on a fire safety course the fireman said get a fire
blanket not an extinguisher cos ...

- There are several types of extinguisher for different sorts of fire
and will you choose the right one in the heat and the smoke of the
moment?

- If the fire is too big to put out with a fire blanket then you don't
want to be anywhere near it

- Fire blankets are better than extinguishers for dealing quickly and
safely with a chip pan fire

Anna


~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plaster repairs
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 01359 230642

"Anna Kettle" wrote in message
...


When I went on a fire safety course the fireman said get a fire
blanket not an extinguisher cos ...

- There are several types of extinguisher for different sorts of fire
and will you choose the right one in the heat and the smoke of the
moment?

- If the fire is too big to put out with a fire blanket then you don't
want to be anywhere near it

- Fire blankets are better than extinguishers for dealing quickly and
safely with a chip pan fire

A fire-fighter told me the cheapest and safest way is to keep your insurance
is upto date and get the hell out there if there is a fire.
Don't phone from the house just go and wake someone.

Anna Kettle wrote:
On 20 Jul 2005 23:58:37 -0700, wrote:

I only mentioned fire extinguisher because, when I turned on the
C/H in one of my flats the other day, there was a sharp crack, the
power went off, and I could smell a burning smell near the Fuse
Box. It turned out to be no big deal - a wire had burnt out, and
cooled down fairly quickly, and it's now fixed. However, I felt
really uncomfortable/worried, and would have felt a lot better if I
had had an extinguisher handy. Pull the loop, aim at base of fire,
press the trigger - not sure what's difficult about that g

Not difficult, but if I understand right, lethal. It is essential to
stand on the exit side of the fire, so that when the fire is 5x the
size after youre done spraying it, youre not then trapped and facing
death. That is, again IIUC, one way they get people into trouble.
Another is they expose you to smoke inhalation, which kills more
people than the fire itself.

When I went on a fire safety course the fireman said get a fire
blanket not an extinguisher cos ...

- There are several types of extinguisher for different sorts of fire
and will you choose the right one in the heat and the smoke of the
moment?

- If the fire is too big to put out with a fire blanket then you don't
want to be anywhere near it

- Fire blankets are better than extinguishers for dealing quickly and
safely with a chip pan fire


Although a recent test (in Which maybe? was on the news anyway) found that
most domestic fire blankets performed worse or only as well as a wet
towel...

The really dangerous thing is using a water extinguisher on burning liquids,
chipfat, petrol etc. Easy and spectacular way to make a flamethrower.

Anna Kettle wrote:
When I went on a fire safety course the fireman said get a fire
blanket not an extinguisher cos ...
- Fire blankets are better than extinguishers for dealing quickly and
safely with a chip pan fire

You shouldn't be using a chip pan in the first place.

Owain

In article , PC Paul
writes
Anna Kettle wrote:
On 20 Jul 2005 23:58:37 -0700, wrote:

I only mentioned fire extinguisher because, when I turned on the
C/H in one of my flats the other day, there was a sharp crack, the
power went off, and I could smell a burning smell near the Fuse
Box. It turned out to be no big deal - a wire had burnt out, and
cooled down fairly quickly, and it's now fixed. However, I felt
really uncomfortable/worried, and would have felt a lot better if I
had had an extinguisher handy. Pull the loop, aim at base of fire,
press the trigger - not sure what's difficult about that g

Not difficult, but if I understand right, lethal. It is essential to
stand on the exit side of the fire, so that when the fire is 5x the
size after youre done spraying it, youre not then trapped and facing
death. That is, again IIUC, one way they get people into trouble.
Another is they expose you to smoke inhalation, which kills more
people than the fire itself.

When I went on a fire safety course the fireman said get a fire
blanket not an extinguisher cos ...

- There are several types of extinguisher for different sorts of fire
and will you choose the right one in the heat and the smoke of the
moment?

- If the fire is too big to put out with a fire blanket then you don't
want to be anywhere near it

- Fire blankets are better than extinguishers for dealing quickly and
safely with a chip pan fire


Although a recent test (in Which maybe? was on the news anyway) found that
most domestic fire blankets performed worse or only as well as a wet
towel...

Not that surprising really. The few fire blankets I've seen seem to be
rather inflexible and if you were to put that on a chip pan the air
could easily leak around the edges whereas a wet towel would be far more
flexible and form a better seal, thus cutting off the air supply.

Not that this likely to be a problem here, being married to a French
foodie who thinks that English women are grossly overweight 'cos of all
the chips they eat.

Still you don't need to cook all those salads do you?, even in
winter;(....

--
Tony Sayer